Dai-Sifu Martin Dragos

From EWTO National Chief Instructor in Slovenia to His Own Organization

Dai-Sifu Martin Dragos (born 1968) began his journey in Martial Arts at the age of six. For the first 25 years he devoted himself to training WT-Leung Ting System, lead by Keith Kernspecht. Giuseppe Schembri (Chief Instructor of the EWTO in Switzerland) guided him for 9 years, until the end of the unarmed part of the System. From 1994 to 2000 he was the national Chief Instructor of EWTO in Slovenia, having founded, after his voluntary departure, his own organization: "DRAGOS DEFENSE CLUB".

The Diploma as Master of Wing Tsun Kung Fu

In 2001, Sifu Dragos continued his studies with Sergio Iadarola, to complete his training. In 2003 he had been promoted to Master. Although his prior training was long and comprehensive, Sifu Dragos realized over time, however, that the classic WT System he learned from his teachers had many "Missing-Links" (weaknesses and conceptual shortcomings). These "sub-optimal edges" are, in his view, a result of the continuation, based on tradition, of ineffective aspects and standards never questioned, as well as the absence of important aspects lost over time. However, leaving the technical aspect aside, it was mainly the profound disappointment about interpersonal aspects that inspired him to take the final step away from his former teachers.

Evolution against Tradition

According to Sifu Dragos' point of view, misunderstood traditions and the greed of many masters are the main factors that have compromised the development of the System for generations. According to his observations, the Chinese are especially responsible for this. Because of their strong need to follow traditions, they are more easily caught in this trap. This phenomenon is also typically mentioned as "do not deviate from the line". Sifu Dragos believes that the preservation/accumulation of knowledge is not an end in itself. Constant change for the better must be seen as an integral part of the creative culture of evolution.

The one who lets only his teacher think, has no chance to develop. This posture is dangerous and probably will result in others thinking for you. The beginning is always complicated. However, once the "stones start rolling" by the presence of good habits, anything is possible! Just keep training and success will be inevitable. We live in a time, like no other in history, in which we have access to different areas of knowledge. Through the internet it is possible to have access to impressions regarding any existing martial art. Nowadays, this access seems obvious and self-evident. In the past, however, this was not the case. He who neglects the fact that access to different areas of knowledge can be used as inspiration for his own development, wastes valuable potentials. This does not just apply to WT. All Martial Arts are evolving together!

Questioning the "Traditional Way" / Formation of Secret Cults

The traditional path preached by the traditional Chinese Martial Arts says: "never deviate from the source, remain faithful to the line." By this thought, knowledge is diluted and contaminated the further it departs from the "Source." At first glance this may even make sense - but not in terms of science and evolution! WT, which calls itself a "Scientific System", is not conservation at all costs, but an idea that is constantly evolving. Only valuable and useful elements are kept and passed on to future generations. In the eyes of Sifu Dragos, the individual is deprived of the chance of his own evolution by the dispersion of responsibilities and creativity of his predecessors. In this process, the evolution is the real constant. It is everywhere, it is ubiquitous. Any serious martial art is the result of the growth in experience, added to the System after the access of each new generation. To ignore and prevent this dynamics is to stagnate our own development.

Unfortunately, especially in Chinese Martial Arts, the information is retained so that one can take advantage of the students. The student is always seen as a potential competitor in the future. This old-fashion way of thinking comes from a time when a person could simply take over a school after beating its teacher in a challenge. In addition, the Chinese regarded foreigners as "invaders" and a threat to their own culture. This "always suspicious" attitude is really understandable, given the context.

What is interesting, however, is the fact that this attitude continues to be perpetuated by non-Chinese, without question. The result is a "Secret Cult." If this process persists through generations, less and less knowledge is passed on to the next generation. As a result, what you see is an atrophy of the System.

Development of the DRAGOSWINGTSUN® system

During his 40 years dedicated to martial arts - of these, more than 30 dedicated exclusively to Wing Tsun - Sifu Dragos laid the foundations for his art, the development of DRAGOSWINGTSUN® (DWT). This process was not intentional, but instead was the result of a mentality acquired very early, developed in parallel to his career as an Engineer. This ended up becoming his motivating force: The constant exploration/research of better ways of implementing WT in practice. This "Kaizen" (Kaizen, from Japanese, "Change for the Best") happened during the last 10-15 years of his work and resulted in a WT System with a quality level not yet known. The Long Pole training mainly provided fundamental discoveries that could be transferred to the Unarmed System, due to characteristics such as its simplified geometry and its weight. In practical application, what did not work against physically superior attackers was discarded. The "Extreme" is our teacher - it brings to light what was hidden in the dark.

DWT system is now characterized by a systematic classification of all scenarios of combat in attack, defense and emergency solution, the solution of problems by thinking in functions, the integration of isometric structures, the use of opposing resources by applying the "Relative Force" principle, the simplification of decisions during the visual pre-combat phase, the integration of weapons footwork into the unarmed part of the system, and the implementation of a real automatism based on mechanics concept in case of inevitable collisions.

Experience shows us that DRAGOSWINGTSUN® requires (and encourages) the student to achieve a much higher degree of body control over his/her body than it is necessary when learning classical WT. However, if the student overcomes this obstacle with energy and diligence, he will reach a previously unimaginable level in his/her martial art.

WT-Masters-Academy - Intensive study program for enthusiasts

After the establishment of the Intensive Programs of the WT-Masters-Academy in 2004, it soon became clear to Sifu Dragos that the continuation of the DRAGOS DEFENSE CLUB organization was incompatible with the principles of the WT-Masters Academy. He dissolved his organization to focus entirely on intensive training seminars. While "traditional" organizations keep their students in a vicious cycle that can easily last 20-30 years, people from any organization could learn from that moment on without any obligation to stay connected. The whole system, including the weapons, would take between 1 and 3 years and - with appropriate commitment - mastery could be achieved within 5 to 7 years.

Father of the Liberalization Movement

Within WT circles, Dai-Sifu Martin Dragos is considered the Father of the so-called "Liberalization Movement". He was the first to be successful in dismantling the secret cult and the monopolistic structures of big WT associations. Since then the image of the industry has changed considerably. The possibility of being independent was perceived by large numbers of enthusiasts across the world. For the organizations that still stick to their old "secret cult" standards, change was a matter of survival. Threats of violence and challenges were the result. Sifu Dragos, however, did not feel intimidated or deviated from the path he chose. Since then, many organizations have copied his concept.

Future Perspectives

Through the now created possibility to make the DWT system accessible to everyone online on a worldwide basis, a further step was taken in the direction of transnational liberalization. For Dai-Sifu Martin Dragos, this is also a signal that it is time to give more opportunities to those advanced technicians and masters who have trained diligently in recent years.

Although in the last 10 years Sifu Dragos has been intentionally away from any organizational activity to devote his full attention to intensive training, he recently decided to change his parameters. With the help of the Network of Instructors of DRAGOSWINGTSUN LEAGUE, different Tutors from all over the world should be trained and, in the future, will be an extension of the Chief Instructor. It is irrelevant whether they will operate independently or organized under the DRAGOSWINGTSUN® Organization. The mastery and promotion of DWT is the criterion and common denominator for future tutors. The partner who already acts as a tutor allows the Online-student to complete, in a place as close as possible to his/her residence, his/her practical training. Updates and guidance regarding training will be determined by the Online Academy. For more information, see the "Partner Program" section.